Decade of Dog Day

Today, I celebrate a decade with Zoe.

Yup, my baby turns 10 years old today . . . I can hardly believe it.

It is another glorious morning here (honest!) and Zoe and I left extra early for our walk. We returned to Tipton Park so Zoe could be off leash and she really took advantage of it today.

What normally takes about an hour to walk (twice around each of the three "water" areas), took over two hours this morning! She was really in her element today and spent most of the time either in the water or in the marsh grass and plants trying to flush out bunnies and whatever that dam-building mammal is that lives there. I suppose it could be beavers. I don't know what else build dams in wetlands and I saw the head of one swimming that looked very beaver-ish.

Anyway, she was beside herself with joy this morning. Lots to smell and chase and I think she found a hole that some critter uses 'cause she was digging like crazy at it. I made her stop - I don't want to upset the environment there too much and if you give Zoe an inch she takes a mile.

The air was cool and the sun was warm as we made our way around the park. I finally pulled her away from the mud, gave her a drink, and got her back into the car. Soon she will get a bath. I know, I'm a mean mommy to bathe her today, but she needs it and besides, I found a flea on Henry this morning so all animals get their flea and tick treatment today.

I'll make up for the bath though. Emack and Bolio's, a Boston based ice-cream store that miraculously has a location in Normal, makes a doggy sundae (it's HUGE and has about 10 dog biscuits in it) so she and I are going for ice-cream later today! Yippee!!

Right now my old gal is sitting out back on the patio, enjoying the shade and the cool morning air . . . and I think about how FAST the 10 years have gone. I can hardly remember living without her. She is truly a most loyal companion and I am so fortunate to have her in my life. I have talked about her a great deal in this blog, perhaps that is because she is so wildly important to me and such a big part of my life.

Though you've probably heard these highlights before, here are some of my life with her these past 10 years:

-being there for her very first day alive and watching her grow up. Most folks get their pups when they're about 6 - 8 weeks old. I got her when she was just a few HOURS old. What a gift!
-going to Shawnee Mission Park with her, her brother Rupert, and friends passing through en route to Chicago when the pups were maybe a month old. Zoe and Rupert chased butterflies in the late afternoon sunshine.
-traveling to Chicago when she was about 2 months old. She fell asleep on the foot of my friend in the kitchen and also slept in the same room with the cat - we have the pictures to prove it.
-the summers spent in Keene, NH with my friend the Modern Dancer and his dog, Monty. We hiked this great path nearly every day - sometimes twice a day!
-going to the park near our place in Boston in the middle of winter. The dog owners would congregate while one of them used a laser pointer to exercise ALL of the dogs. Imagine a pack of dogs chasing a tiny red light on the snow. Hilarious!
-Zoe getting me out of bed early one cold, rainy morning in Maine to take our usual hike. I saw a juvenile bull moose that morning!
-all the walks, hikes and runs in DC: in Rock Creek Park, the C & O Canal, the Mall, Lincoln Park, Marion Park, and Congressional Cemetery. She introduced me to a lot of people there: my Pink House Housemate, the Tall Drink of Water I dated for a bit, and so many other friends.
-her visit to Lexington, VA and the fun we had there: her swimming out to check on rope swing jumpers, her first experience being a Truck Dog, and our hikes in the mountains with my fellow cast members.
-trips to all the different beaches we've visited: Hampton, Cape Cod, Old Orchard, Ocean City, Broadkill Beach, and Dewey Beach. One of my favorite trips was Broadkill when the Green Man played fetch with her in the waves.
-all of our road trips: Arizona (where she hiked Sabino Canyon with PhD and destroyed the golf balls in Pastor Dave's backyard putting green), Georgia (where she to swam every day in the lake behind my brother's house and hiked the nearby trails), Denver (where she played in the snow), and countless day trips.
-all of the family hikes in Western Massachusetts. She loves to run ahead and the come back to check on her pack.
-all of the times she has bossed me with her leash.
-all of the times she has "cuddled" with me at night.

In spite of my complaining about her ear infections, dermatitis, her rolling in stinky things, and all the money I've spent (and to be fair, others have spent) to keep her healthy and happy, I wouldn't have it any other way. She is my daily joy.

She is a good dog.

And we've had one hell of a decade.